Google+ Followers

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Social Security

I ran my for the first time since the half marathon on Saturday. It was an easy 2.5 miles around the block. I wore my finishers medal tucked into my shirt and just reflected on the last few years. I am amazed that I can sit and type it was an "easy" 2.5 miles compared to where I was 3 years ago.

I'm reflecting on this today because I had to fill out my Social Security update report and mail it in this week. For those of you not familiar with Social Security Disability, the administration does a follow up about every two years to see if a person is still eligible to receive benefits. Pisses me off because those benefits are what I have paid into the system since I started working at 15 years old, but that's neither here nor there right now.

The report asks questions such as:
Have you worked?
Have you discussed going back to work with your doctor?
Overall how is your health compared to the beginning of the reporting period?
Then you go on to list the dates of doctors appointments, treatments and hospitalizations during the reporting period.

Sound pretty straightforward right? I suppose it is until I get to the part about how is your health.
Do check the box that says "has gotten worse" "the same" or "has improved".
I do not believe it has gotten worse so that is not an option. When I applied three years ago I was having a severe relapse, that I caused me not to walk, but obviously that is not the case right now. I did have 2 relapses since then though. I still have the same lesions on my brain with a new one or two, I still have cognitive issues, thinking straight and memory to be exact, - oh and if one more person tells me " I have that too we're just getting old it's normal" I think I may scream! The depression is still the same. No improvement there. I don't sleep all day like I used to.

I want to answer these questions honestly. I don't want to be the one getting these benefits because I don't deserve them. I do believe I was over thinking the whole thing. In the end I took my #2 pencil and put an x in the box stating "the same", sealed the envelope and dropped it in the mail box.